ABlake Enterprises presents @ 1 Million Cups Wilmington
ABlake Enterprises presents @ 1 Million Cups Wilmington
1 Million Cups is a free, weekly national program designed to educate, engage, and connect entrepreneurs. Developed by the Kauffman Foundation, 1MC is based on the notion that entrepreneurs discover solutions and network over a million cups of coffee.
Every Wednesday morning, one or two early-stage startups present their companies to a diverse audience of their peers, mentors, educators, and advisors.
Each founder presents for six minutes, followed by a 20-minute question-and-answer session with the audience.
Afterward, each startup receives feedback via audience comments and questions from local organizers and in our session were also students from DelTech Community College.
The culture surrounding 1 Million Cups is that of a supportive, neutral space welcoming entrepreneurs to be open and honest about their businesses and the challenges they face.
1 Million Cups is led by more than 300 volunteers in 35+ states, one U.S. territory, and six time zones. It attracts an estimated national weekly attendance of more than 2,500 people.
On Wednesday, May 4th, I presented ABlake Enterprises in front of a diverse audience which also included two of my “bestie” friends, Lisa Bryant of LBAFG Consulting, and Nicolle Surrett, NspiredbyNicolle .
I am not going to lie and say that I wasn’t initially nervous, because I was. As I sat there listening to Dillon, a young entrepreneur who presented prior to me I began to think, “what have I gotten myself into…I wonder if they think ABlake Enterprises is a pipe dream…or if they think I am too old to start a Social Media Management and Consulting Business but once I got started all of those question and anxieties disappeared.
Towards the end of my presentation which ran a bit longer than 6 minutes, my throat began to get dry. I was too nervous to drink a cup of coffee prior to my presentation so I was definitely parched by the end of it.
Fortunately, I had attended a previous presentation by Lisa and knew what to expect and since there weren’t many audience questions afterwards I was able to grab a cup of coffee, do a little networking before heading out to work.
I highly recommend that all new business startups present at a 1Million Cups program, not only for the feedback but to also gain a little more experience in presenting in front of an audience of potential clients.
Thank you Paul, Mark, Kadesha and Brenda!
